SOURCE: "The Poetry of Thomas Paine," in The Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. LXXIX, No. 1, January, 1955, pp. 81-99.

Addressing the much-neglected body of Paine's poetical writings, the essay that follows summarizes and assesses some of Paine's most read and more notable poems.

Even the most fanatic devotees of Thomas Paine have had very little to say concerning his verse. Some of his admirers maintain that his prose has merit enough to secure him a respected place in American literature without the need of poetry. Others say that since he proved his talents in verse to be worthy of his prose, it is regrettable that he failed to encourage his poetic vein. Actually, Paine devoted more attention to poetry than most people realize. In The Age of Reason he discussed the differences between poetry and prose and illustrated the manner in which the books of Isaiah and...